Search - They Might Be Giants :: Miscellaneous T

Hey, Mr. DJ!

J. T. Nite | Mesa, AZ USA | 08/14/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"One caveat: this should not be your first TMBG album. It's a collection of B-sides, so it's a little weirder than their album fare. If you have any of the others, however, this is worth a look.There are several tracks here that aren't actual songs -- "Hello Radio," "Mr. Klaw," and the untitled track. These are worth a couple of listens, but are more novelty tracks than anything. Two of the remixes sound almost identical to their album mixes, while the third and fourth are different but not necessarily better.But -- and it's a big "but," my friends -- then there are the actual songs. TMBG is notorious for putting great songs on their B-sides, and these are no exception. "Hey, Mr. DJ," "It's not my birthday," and "Nightgown of the sullen moon" are all good Linnel-based rock, reminiscent of "Letterbox," "Birdhouse in your soul," and "Don't Let's Start." "I'll Sink Manhattan" is a fantastic Flansburgh torch-song. "The Famous Polka" is a dizzying spin on the electric guitar and accordion. "For Science" is a 1950's B-sci-fi flick in under 2 minutes.In short, there are at least 10 good songs you can't get anywhere else and two remixes that are substantially different from their album incarnations. A definite recommended purchase for the initiate."

Not for a First-Time Buyer

stopper6 | Brooklyn, NY | 01/27/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Every fan loves Misc T. They will tell you to buy it, buy it, buy it. If this is your first-time TMBG experience, you should go for one of the classics (John Henry, Flood, Apollo 18) before investing in this album. Not to say it's not good, but it's more like a trivia album, a not-really album. Good for rounding out the collection.If you have other albums, do go ahead and buy this, you will not be disappointed, regardless of my earlier warnings."Well how does he make money off... whatever he's advertising in the paper, that's the part that don't make no sense""

SUPER

Joseph Yee | San Francisco, CA | 05/07/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Not knowing that it was a remix album when I first bought it (it was one of my first TMBG albums I got), all of the songs sounded pretty new to me. I guess that made it even better, as the Kiss Me, Son of God remix grew to me before I heard the original.



Overall, album is really a mix of the incredible (Hey, Mr. Dj, Nightgown of the Sullen Moon, *Untitled*, The Famous Polka), the mediocre (For Science, Birds Fly, I'll Sink Manhattan), to the completely throw-away (Mr. Klaw, Hello Radio). Though, good tracks still outnumber the bad.



The Johns (still with a drum machine at this point) never cease to amaze me with Hey, Mr. Dj... which (combined with a couple others) really is enough to warrant a purchase alone. And regardless of how little effort they might've put into some of the other tracks (I'm still wondering about The Biggest One...) you still have the classic Don't Let's Start and The World's Address tracks to fulfill the nostalgic needs for previous TMBG album owners.



If the thought of a standard TMBG isn't quirky enough, a remix and B-side album is just pushing the limit, really. Though in the end, it comes out quite nice. I really wouldn't recommend this album to newcomers of TMBG, as they should start off with something a bit more classic to introduce them to the Giants' humor and intellect. But for everyone else, it's a still a beauty to behold and rightfully deserves a place on your shelf."